Saudi is making friends with everyone, including Turkey. they are depositing huge sums with the Turkish central bank, for example.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and Global South strategic cooperation
- Thread starter Strangelove
- Start date
Remember that there is Turkey as well, which shares a border with Iran and Iraq.
And Turkey by itself is a larger than Iran or Saudi.
So there's a triangular balance here with Iraq in the middle
It's going to take years for Saudi Arabia to decouple themselves from America. Look how much American bonds, property, business they are exposed to. They are in a similar position to China.
Also military equipment. Saudi Arabia has an absurb number of American military equipment which needs spares and maintenance.
Drawing Saudi Arabia out of America's influence is going to be a long and hard effort
Saudi may have a trump card to play.
After all, the USA is desperately hunting around for Patriot batteries to send to Europe, they are already demanding that Kuwait give them theirs. If things don’t improve in Ukraine the US can approach Saudi with an offer for some of their existing equipment, which Saudi can turn into a win.
American are sensitive. A slight diversification is a straight backstab to Americans. There is no inbetween. Be a good American dog or be its arch enemy.